Garth McLennan

sports editor

ll you need to know about Vancouver

Canucks winger Rick Rypien occurred in
the third period back on December 10 against
the Atlanta Thrashers, when Rypien, who
stands 5 foot 11 and weighs just 184 pounds,
fought Atlanta’s 6-foot-7 behemoth Boris
Valabik, who at 245 lbs had a whopping 61
pound weight advantage over Rypien.

Despite the seemingly ridiculous size
discrepancy, Rypien, who, with struggling
center Kyle Wellwood scratched was able to
move up to the third line, not only dropped
the gloves with Valabik, he beat the crap out
of him in the
process. Daniel
Sedin may have
scored a hat trick
and won the
game, but it was
Rypien who won the hearts of the fans.

Two nights later against the Minnesota
Wild, Rypien was in his element. Despite
receiving the least total ice time among
Canuck forwards, the undrafted 25 year old
from Coleman, Alberta, made his 6:46 count,
as he did an excellent job of buzzing in on the
fore-check and hammering Minnesota’s Jamie
Sifers just 2:10 into the game to set the tone
early.

That is where Rypien’s value to the
Canucks lies, and why the fans love him
so much. He’s a working-class, relatively
undersized guy with the odds seemingly
always stacked against him who isn’t afraid
of anyone or anything. Unlike a number of
other tough guys around the NHL, Rypien can
actually play the game. Sure, he isn’t going
to be a 50 goal scorer any time soon, but he

 

 

ae

“That live-and-let-die attitude has won
Rypien the bulk of his fan base.”

Rick Rypien, Vancouver folk hero

 

can chip in a goal or two here and there and
he’s the very definition of an energy player in
today’s game.

According to hockeyfights.com, which
is recognized by the NHL, Rypien has won
every fight he’s had this year except one,
and that includes everyone from giants like
Valabik and Montreal’s 6-foot-7 Hal Gill to
grizzled veterans like Detroit’s Brad May right
up to some of the league’s most established
enforcers such as Edmonton’s Zach Stortini.
That live-and-let-die attitude has won Rypien
the bulk of his fan base.

Just as importantly as his seemingly
boundless courage is the fact that he’s been
able to stay healthy this year. A string of
injuries throughout his professional career
have hampered his
ability to remain the
line-up, but after inking
a one-year, one-way
contract this summer,
and being able to suit
up for all but a few games so far, Rypien
has firmly entrenched himself as a fourth-
line staple with the potential to move up to
the second and third lines temporarily when
the need arises, which was the case when
Wellwood’s play tanked.

Where Rypien goes after this season,
presuming he stays healthy is anybody’s
guess. In a league where the tough and gritty
players have a tendency to migrate from team
to team on an almost yearly basis, it’s far too
soon to say that Rypien will be a Canuck for
years to come, regardless of how valuable he
is to the team right now. However, judging
from the overwhelming crowd reactions he
gets pretty much each and every game, and
it’s safe to say how the city of Vancouver feels
about him.

 

 

Russian Roulette

By Garth McLennan, Sports
Editor

Well, with the holidays behind us, we
now have a time to reflect. One of the
negative aspects of the holiday season
is the annual spike in suicides. Now,
while there are a number of ways to
off yourself, one of the most dramatic
has always been Russian roulette. But
is it a sport?

 

cultural shift for it to start showing
up on SportsNet or TSN—but I think
everyone would agree it’s fairly
intense.

Competition wise, you’re really
just facing off against the gun, not
anyone else. It’s pretty simple really;
you’ ve got a one in six shot of living.
Hey, at least the rules, unlike all
those ESPN sports, aren’t all that
complicated and it’s pretty easy to tell

“1 don’t think anyone could deny that Russian roulette
has the pressure aspect down to a science. It’s quite
literally do-or-die.”

I don’t think anyone could deny
that Russian roulette has the pressure
aspect down to a science. It’s quite
literally do-or-die. Also, unlike golf or
bowling, there is a very real potential
for some hefty physical contact,
and unlike football or hockey, you
probably won’t be getting up any time
soon afterwards. Plus, you have to
have guts in order to actually pull the
trigger in this game.

Except in a few really strange
circles, there aren’t any teams in
Russian roulette, and there aren’t
any points to be scored. I suppose
that anyone can play it as well,
although when you think about it
failed ex-athletes with shattered
dreams are likely participants. Now,
there aren’t any television deals in
Russian roulette, and it'll take a major

when things aren’t going well for one
of the players.

Now, career length of your
average Russian roulette stat probably
isn’t all that long. Football players
think it’s tough with three years in
the NFL being the standard for most
guys? That’s nothing; Russian roulette
players in their league (well, alright,
there isn’t really a league) don’t even
know if they’re making it out of that
night!

THE VERDICT:

Okay, kidding aside, it would take a
pretty big stretch of the imagination
to classify Russian roulette as a sport,
even without the illegality and death
involved. Safe to say, Russian roulette
is not a sport.